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Anna Pavlova by Tiffany Shaw-Diaz


and suddenly
her arms became wings

not like the dainty ones
given to a finch

but the luxurious ones
bestowed to a swan

she was born a human
yes I know

but that word
is simply ill-fitting

for her veins
must be charged

with the breath of angels
or the melodies

that drift between
each burning star

because I can
easily assure you

she was never  
fully of this earth

---

Tiffany Shaw-Diaz is a Pushcart Prize and Dwarf Stars Award nominee who also works as a professional visual artist. Her poetry has been featured in Modern Haiku, The Heron's Nest, Bones, NHK World Haiku Masters, The Mainichi, and dozens of other publications. Her first chapbook, says the rose, was published by Yavanika Press in 2019.

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